Air Force One, carrying President Joe Biden, touched down at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, Dec. 8, just past 5:07 p.m., after soaring into in the Southland to launch a celebrity-studded fundraising swing ahead of his 2024 re-election campaign.
On a chilly Southland evening just after darkness fell, the president disembarked from the presidential plane accompanied by Secret Service agents. No ceremonies were staged to greet Biden, who was whisked away via helicopter for the first in a series of big money meet-and-greets.
Biden began his West Coast tour in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon, where he discussed his administration’s efforts to bolster U.S. infrastructure. A planned high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga got a Biden administration pledge of $3 billion to help start laying track, elected officials said.
Meanwhile, Jill Biden visited Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Friday to tour research laboratories as part of the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research. She toured the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center and Smidt Heart Institute, the White House said.
The first lady is also expected to appear at fundraisers for her husband on Friday and Saturday. The Associated Press reported that the couple would attend six different meetings around the L.A. area between the two of them.
This weekend’s events are aimed at helping Biden reach a fundraising target of roughly $67 million for the fourth quarter of the year, according to a source close to the president’s campaign who spoke to the Associated Press but insisted on anonymity to discuss internal numbers.
The first Los Angeles fundraiser, meanwhile, was scheduled to kick off in West L.A. Friday evening and was expected to draw a throng of musicians, movie stars and moguls. The high society happening is being hosted by several notable members of the entertainment industry, including Steven Spielberg, Shonda Rhimes and Rob Reiner, with a planned performance by Lenny Kravitz.
The Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report
